


Observe

by LoyalTheorist



Category: Gravity Falls
Genre: Ford Pines Needs to Dedicate Some Time to Self-Care, Gen, Stan Pines is Mentioned, Wendy is Suspicious of Dipper, really - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-09-17
Updated: 2018-09-17
Packaged: 2019-07-13 08:47:21
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 994
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16014434
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LoyalTheorist/pseuds/LoyalTheorist
Summary: Appearences can be deceiving, and a lot of the time they are. Pines family members seem to be something of an exception to this rule.





	Observe

Stanford Pines - that was his name. He wasn't tall like Fiddleford had expected him to be. (Though Fiddleford wasn't exactly sure why he'd expected him to be tall.) Stanford was short. It wasn't as though Fiddleford was a particularly tall fellow himself, but Stanford, Stanford was practically  _minuscule._ Sturdily built, too, but thin - almost scarily thin, like he hadn't eaten much lately. Fiddleford hoped he wouldn't have a roommate like he'd heard stories about, the ones who didn't really have the money to eat anything, so they stole whatever food you had. Not that Fiddleford would really have minded if Stanford needed it that much, but it would still be a nuisance.

At a glance, it was immediately obvious that Stanford wasn't the most well-groomed of people. His curly brown hair appeared as though it hadn't been washed in weeks: bits stuck out at awkward angles, some parts looked matted, even, and he could tell from the way it glinted in the dim light of the room that it was horrendously greasy. Then there was the way he smelled. Stanford didn't even have to be close. The rooms at Backups more weren't exactly large, but they were decently sized, and Fiddleford could smell him from across the room. Stanford Pines  _reeked._ He stank worse than the rotting pig cousin Elma didn't properly dispose of back in '73. Fiddleford wasn't even aware human beings were capable of smelling that bad.

Stanford's face was...alright-looking. He wasn't a model by a long shot, but he wasn't horribly disfigured, either. His jaw was set in a scowl - though Fiddleford didn't think it was directed at him, more at life in general - his nose was gigantic and slightly crooked, like it'd been broken, maybe in a fight. Fiddleford also hoped Stanford wasn't the fighting type before looking over him a second time and deciding that if Stanford were a fighter, he'd be dead now. His eyebrows were raised - he was suspicious of Fiddleford. Seemed somewhat paranoid. It's not like Fiddleford would hurt him - heck, he probably wouldn't be able to if he tried. Their eyes met, blue on blue, and it was like staring at a block of ice. Not because of their color, but because Stanford's eyes were cold, harsh, unforgiving. Stanford's eyes were practically dead.

It was then that Fiddleford decided he was going to find out why. It wasn't as though Fiddleford had some desire to know what was going on in everyone's life all the time. It was just that Stanford was a mystery - one that could be solved, and, if Fiddleford did it right, possibly fixed. There was a reason Stanford Pines scowled at life in general, and Fiddleford was going to figure out why. Then he was going to stop the scowling because Stanford's face was the face of someone who had given up, and Fiddleford hated people who just gave up. Fiddleford was going to teach Stanford not to give up, even if it killed him.

* * *

Wendy groaned and smacked her head down on the counter. Her fiery red hair spread around her. Apparently, Stan had new employees. Great. Just great. She knew Stan'd been complaining about the work they did a few weeks back, but she'd figured that was just regular Stan drivel. She wasn't worried about Stan firing her or Soos. Stan would fire her when she burnt the town down. Stan would fire Soos when the moon turned out to have a cream cheese filling. Stan was a stale marshmallow - tough on the outside and gooey on the inside.

It was the fact that she didn't know these new employees that bugged her. They could be annoying brats. They could be vampires. They could start stealing merchandise. (Admittedly, Wendy had stolen merch before, but that was a long story.) Then a boy walked in. He was tiny - four foot eight at best. He didn't seem like a vampire. He'd just been in the sun, after all. That was of course excluding the possibility that vampires sparkled in the sun like in that book everyone said teenage girls liked these days. Sunrise, maybe? Didn't matter. Was a stupid book anyway.

Even if the kid wasn't a vampire, brat and theif were still two very possible options. This twerp walked all hunched over like he had something to hide. He had on a blue vest that looked like it had lots of pockets to stash stuff inside of. Wendy would've let it slip if he'd snatched, say, a hairbrush. His chocolate locks were a mess. Complete rat's nest. Maybe one of the hats the had since forever as well. The one he had was awfully dirty, and the fabric was torn in some places. It was mishappened, too, and Wendy could see why. He held it in his hands and messed with it, twisting it all different ways.

His eyes darted around the room. Slowly, he approached her. He gave a little wave and squawked out an awkward "Hi". For the briefest instant, Wendy was confused. Was Shady guy scared of her? Then she realized that the kid was shy. That was suspicious in and of itself. Stan had no patience for shy people. Cautiously, she said hello back and asked the kid his name. The answer was Dipper Pines. That explained a lot. The kid was Stan's family. Leave it to Stanford Pines to call visiting relatives employees. First, she was looking for some physical similarity, but then she realized. The kid didn't just walk, he slunk. And she could feel his eyes on her the second he'd walked in the door, evaluating her as much as she was him before moving on to the room. Then there was the way how when they'd locked eyes, she'd seen his glint mischievously.

Dipper Pines was a lot like Stan Pines, and that was going to make having him around either a little more bearable or a whole lot less bearable.

 


End file.
